Technical Abstract:
Vegetable producers use plastic (polyethylene) mulch to control moisture, temperature and weeds. The polyethylene mulch system is associated with runoff which often contains excessive soil, pesticides and nutrients. Cereal rye was tested and found to meet the initial requirements for a vegetative filter, i.e., early spring growth, summer dormancy and ability to withstand tractor and walker traffic. These vegetative filter strips were then tested in the furrows between the rows for their ability to mitigate soil loss. Initial studies showed a ten fold decrease in soil loss compared to polyethylene mulch covered beds with bare soil furrows. No significant change in total production yield was observed.